Take Me Out to the Ballgame

Well, here I am again. I am hoping this is like riding a bicycle, and it will all come back to me very quickly! Anyway, MB, I will try and be a little less lazy in the days to come. :)

Back at the beginning of summer as my anniversary was approaching, I was having a hard time coming up with a gift for Eric. I can't express how much giving the "perfect" gift means to me. Unfortunately, it doesn't happen very often for whatever reason, but when it does, It makes my heart happy. I always have a hard time with gifts for Eric. If he needs something, he just goes and buys it, leaving nothing left to the want list. I finally resorted to Google...I mean what can't you figure out with Google at your fingertips?? I came across an idea that sparked my interest and tailored it to fit us. The drum roll please.....I gave him a box with 13 envelopes...yeah he looked at me that way too. But he was allowed to open the 1st one and read it. It was all mushy and sappy and stuff, but explained that each of the other 12 envelopes would be opened on the 5th of each month (our anniversary is the 5th). They would each explain a date that we would be taking. So, if you do the math, that is one date each month until our 10th anniversary. But, what I thought was the cool thing is that most of our dates are recreating things that we did back before we were married.

Last night, we went on our 3rd date. I know what you are thinking...no it wasn't the on the 5th, but that is the only one that isn't. Back when we were dating, Eric lived in Dalton, and I lived in Bremen. We would meet in Atlanta a lot, because that was sort of half way. One of our rendezvous was a trip to a Braves game, so that is what we did yesterday, hence the reason we went on the 2nd instead of the 5th. They do not schedule their games around me. Anyway, we had a great time, even though it was 150 degrees outside! We were very blessed however because our seats were shaded by the upper deck.

Awwwww, aren't we cute?

I used to be a big Braves fan. I went to games before they ever started winning and Fulton County Stadium was empty. But, now the games seem longer, and the seats seem harder. Maybe that is showing my age. But, yesterday was a treat because Steven Curtis Chapman was in concert after the game, which made the long game and the hard seats worth it!

Now, I mentioned that it was 150 degrees all day, and there hadn't been a cloud in the sky until the band began to set up. Then out of nowhere, the sky turned ugly and the wind started blowing. We could see lighting flashing in the not too distant sky. John Smoltz spoke before the bottom dropped out of the sky. It was rather fitting that he talked about the clouds and storms that God places in our lives.

It absolutely poured for 20 or 30 minutes, while everyone ran for cover. Then we were able to go back to our seats. Because of safety reasons, the band wasn't able to play, but Steven came out with his guitar, his Bible and a microphone. The sky cleared and turned the most beautiful shade of orange and purple. My picture just doesn't do it justice. God is so big and so amazing. The very fact that SCC can even stand on stage is evidence that God is real. He talked about little Maria and the storm that they have been in. He said he has never been more certain that God is real and has a plan for each of us. Does he understand everything, no. Is he still full of questions, absolutely. But, God does have a plan for each one of us. We all walk through storms. This life is a series of them. If we aren't in one now, we will be soon. We just have to trust. So, I pray that wherever you are, whatever you are going through, you can give your life to Him, because He loves you more than anything and He's got it figured out...even if you don't exactly understand it.